Rural Report for Outback NT: Monday, November 25th 2013

1200 horses shot at remote NT community

More than 1200 feral horses have been culled near a remote Indigenous community of Yuendumu in the Northern Territory.

Residents say the horses have been congregating over the last few months, looking for water and damaged infrastructure in the community, which is located 300 kilometres north west of Alice Springs.

In a statement from the Northern Territory Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries, the horses were in "poor condition" and "suffering" due to the dry weather.

Yuendumu has had just 14 millimetres of rain since June.

The statement says that some of the "young and weakened animals also had suffered serious injury through being attacked by dogs".

A number of community meetings were held by the Central Land Council to discuss management options.

Over a two day operation, two helicopters shot 1262 animals, including 41 camels and 32 cattle.

The Northern Territory Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries confirms that 20 per cent of the horses had birdsville disease, a toxic condition caused eating Indigofera linnaei.

Jake Alcock from a service station and take-away store in Yuendumu says the cull has reduced the number of horses visible in the community.

"Over the least week there's been a significant reduction in the number of horses in town," he said.

"They've been disrupting everybody, breaking taps, just trying to get water wherever they can.

"It's been really sad to go out to the dam and you see a couple of them out there that are so unhealthy. Some of them were really bad.

"I motorcycle ride and when I'm out bush you come across carcasses all the time.

"I've very much supportive of the cull because there's just not enough feed for them.

"But some people aren't supportive, they think they should be mustered and taken somewhere else."

Alessia brings some big rainfalls to the Top End

Caddie Brain

Cyclone Alessia, which crossed the Northern Territory coast at 9:00pm yesterday, has been downgraded to a tropical low

Cyclone Alessia packed with winds of up to 95 kilometres per hour around Daly River, and 70 kilometres per hour when it passed south of Darwin.

It brought some big rainfall numbers too, over the last 24 hours.

Darwin Airport recorded 86 millimetres of rain, Gunn Point just north of Darwin had 184 millimetres in the gauge.

Upper Wichkham River on the former Victoria River Downs Station recorded 128 millimetres, Hidden Valley Station on the Roper had 56 millimetres and the McArthur River Mine recorded 86 millimetres.

SA graziers call for drought support

Nikolai Beilharz

Graziers in the far north of South Australia say they've only had 25 millimetres of rain for the entire year.

Andrew Clarke from Allandale station near Oodnadatta says that of his 80 watering holes and points, only two dams still have water.

He says he's frustrated that South Australia hasn't signed up for drought assistance like other states.

"I don't want to waste all my time yelling and screaming, I've got a job to get on with, and that's just to survive this and get through it.

"I'm not looking for the government to come through and save my business, just looking for some sort equity between states.

"From what I gather there is an olive branch there of federal money, why isn't this state getting on top of it and just getting organised and doing it, is it only because there's a handful of us and our votes don't count perhaps? I don't know."